7897 votes were casted in favour of Kharge while Tharoorcould get only 1072 votes. 416 votes were rejected.
Raipur
Veteran leader Mallikarjun Kharge defeated ShashiTharoor by nearly 7000 votes to become the Congress president. Election for the post was held on October 17 while counting was held on Wednesday.
According to official information, 7897 votes were casted in favour of Kharge while Tharoor could get only 1072 votes. 416 votes were rejected.
Meanwhile, Rahul Gandhi, who is on the Bharat JodoYatra, told media in Andhra Pradesh, that Kharge will decide his role. Minutes after his s statement, the Congress officially announced Kharge to become the president. It looked like Rahul Gandhi knew the outcome of the election. Tharoor also congratulated Kharge in a tweet and thanked those who supported him.
With the victory, Kharge has become the 65th leader to become the Congress President. He is the second Dalit leader to become the Congress President after BabuJagjivan Ram.
After independence, the leadership of the party remained with the Gandhi family for 42 out of 75 years. At the same time, for 33 years, the reins of the party president remained with leaders other than the Gandhi family.
Tharoor camp alleges irregularities
Tharoor’s chief election campaigner Salman Soz alleged irregularities during the voting in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Telangana. Soz had said that he has informed the party’s election in-charge Madhusudan Mistry about this.
Congress is the only party to hold elections: Rahul
Rahul Gandhi, who reached Andhra Pradesh in Bharat Jodo Yatra, said, “Congress is the only party in which elections are held and it has its own election commission. I worked with Madhusudan Mistry, chairman of the Congress Election Committee. He is a very articulate speaker. All the issues have been brought to his notice and he will take action,” said Rahul.
Last time elections were held in 1998
The last time voting was held for the post of President in Congress was in the year 1998. It was Jitendra Prasad vsSonia Gandhi. Sonia Gandhi got around 7,448 votes, while Jitendra Prasad got 94 votes.
